Government shutdown: TLS certificates not renewed, many websites are down | ZDNet

Over 80 government websites are down after TLS certificates expired and there's nobody on hand to renew them.

www.zdnet.com|Catalin Cimpanu

NASA, the US Department of Justice, and the Court of Appeals are just some of the US government agencies currently impacted, according to Netcraft.

Consequently, government websites are dropping like flies, with no one being on hand to renew TLS certificates.

Websites with expired certificates where admins followed proper procedures and implemented correctly-functioning HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security) policies are down for good, and users can't access these portals, not even to browse for basic information.

Nevertheless, visitors are warned not to log in or perform any sensitive operations on these sites, as traffic and authentication credentials aren't encrypted and could be intercepted by threat actors.

Visiting and browsing content is fine, but users should also be aware that all websites will not be actively managed and there won't be employees on hand to process requests or update sites with the latest correct information.

According to Axios, the Department of Homeland Security's newly created Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has had 43 percent of its staff, which amounts to roughly 1,500 employees, sent home. The National Institute of Standards and Technology, which puts together and manages many security standards, has also kept only 49 employees of its normal 3,000. 

As shutdown drags on, McConnell heads home to Kentucky, leaving Democrats angry

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was not in the Capitol Friday, when some furloughed federal works missed their first paychecks and the government shutdown tied the mark for the longest in American history.

www.cnn.com|Ted Barrett, CNN

McConnell, who has been brutalized by Democrats for blocking votes to reopen the government , skipped his customary remarks as the Senate gaveled in, when he might have defended his decision not to allow votes until a broad deal is reached between President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats over border wall funding.

Instead, McConnell -- who was headed home to Kentucky, according to his staff -- and other Republicans largely left the floor to Democrats who gave speech after speech assailing them for not standing up for federal workers by standing up to Trump.

"Sen. McConnell and his caucus are AWOL in the middle of this shutdown. They are hiding out. They want to hide behind the President instead of doing their jobs as leaders in a co-equal separate branch of the government," said Sen. Chris Van Hollen a Democrat from Maryland as he walked off the floor after discussing the plight of federal workers in his state. 

Air traffic controllers get their first shutdown pay stub: $0.00

“It puts a tremendous amount of stress in a system that doesn’t need any more stress.”

www.washingtonpost.com

Before Corey Soignet had hundreds of lives in his hands, hour after hour, in the airspace above Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport, he spent years guiding military aircraft. He had joined the Air National Guard with an eye toward becoming a pilot, but found being an air traffic controller such meaningful work that he made it his career.

On Thursday, Soignet — with 22 years of experience working for the military and Federal Aviation Administration — got a look at his wages for the last two weeks of work helping keep U.S. skies and travelers safe. His net pay? $0.00.

More than 24,000 FAA employees are working without pay, since their positions are considered vital for “life and safety.” Another more than 17,000 have been furloughed, told to stop doing their jobs.

This Government Shutdown Is One of the Longest Ever

The current gap in funding is the second longest since 1976.

www.nytimes.com|Guilbert Gates

The current shutdown is the second longest gap in government funding since 1976. It will become the longest if the government doesn’t reopen by Saturday.

Replying to @realDonaldTrump

You soulless, clueless, tone deaf Monster!1 year ago 24 Californians died in a mudslide after the Trump Fire, 2 children have never been found! 86 more lives lost in fires at the end of the year! How about some compassion instead of blame and inhumane vindictiveness #TrumpCruelty

— Michele Che  🌊 🌎 ☮️ 🧩 ✊🏽 ♻️ 🗳 💪🏽‏ @MicheleChevere1 -  Jan 9, 2019

Pilots association urges Trump to work to end shutdown, says it is affecting the 'safety, security and efficiency' of US airspace

A national pilots association is urging President Donald Trump "to take the necessary steps" to end the partial government shutdown, saying that the stalemate is "adversely affecting the safety, security and efficiency of our national airspace system."

www.cnn.com|Devan Cole, CNN

In a letter sent to the President on January 2, Captain Joe DePete, the president of the Air Line Pilots Association, International said that he was writing "(on) behalf of the 61,000 pilots" that belong to to the association to address the issues caused by the shutdown, which is now in its 16th day."

On behalf of the 61,000 pilots of the Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA), I am writing to urge you to take the necessary steps to immediately end the shutdown of government agencies that is adversely affecting the safety, security and efficiency of our national airspace system," DePete wrote in the letter.

Government shutdown: TSA agents ‘calling out sick’ causes lines and chaos in US airports

The shutdown has entered its third week, and Mr Trump is planning a week of events to drum up support for his border wall

www.independent.co.uk

agents with the Transportation Security Administration(TSA) whose paychecks are threatened have been staying home and calling out sick, leaving behind big lines in a system that is already known for crawling at a snail’s pace.

At the Dallas Fort Worth airport, for instance, 5.5 per cent of the TSA agents there “called out” on Friday, compared to the 3.5 per cent who call out on a typical day, TSA assistant administrator for public affairs Michael Bilello wrote on Twitter on Friday.

In New York City’s LaGuardia International Airport, meanwhile, TSA call outs led to massive lines that “snaked” around terminals on Sunday.

"At the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) there are fewer safety inspectors than are needed in order to ensure the air traffic control infrastructure is performing at its peak levels of performance,“ Captain Joe DePete, the president of the pilot union the Air Line Pilots Association, said in a statement. ”There are also airline and aircraft manufacturing oversight activities that either stop or are significantly reduced. These safety and oversight inspections will potentially allow for the introduction of safety issues that put passengers and airline crews at risk".

“We are already in a critically staffed situation, and with the shutdown, the training pipeline has been cut short and there is no relief in sight,” Andrew LeBovidge, the leader of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, told CNN. “Training has stopped ... and we will feel the ripple effects of the lack of personnel for months if not years to come”. 

The Border Wall: How a Potent Symbol Is Now Boxing Trump In

What started out as a memory trick for an undisciplined candidate has become the central priority of the Trump presidency, even as some immigration hard-liners do not view it as a top goal.

www.nytimes.com

“How do we get him to continue to talk about immigration?” Sam Nunberg, one of Mr. Trump’s early political advisers, recalled telling Roger J. Stone Jr., another adviser. “We’re going to get him to talk about he’s going to build a wall.” 

In transforming the wall into a powerful emblem of his anti-immigration message, Mr. Trump has made the proposal politically untouchable for Democrats, who have steadfastly refused to fund it, complicating the chances of any compromise.

“As a messaging strategy, it was pretty successful,” Mr. Krikorian said. “The problem is, you got elected; now what do you do? Having made it his signature issue, Trump handed the Democrats a weapon against him.”

“This is not a wall between Mexico and the United States that the president is creating here; it’s a wall between reality and his constituents, his supporters.”, Speaker Nancy Pelosi

While most Republicans refuse to say so publicly for fear of angering Mr. Trump, many share the view that the wall is only a piece — and nowhere near the most important one — of a broader set of actions needed to overhaul the immigration system, including cuts to legal immigration, tighter standards for granting asylum and better enforcement.

“The fence is an easy thing to sell politically,” Mr. Mulvaney said then. “It’s an easy thing for someone who doesn’t follow the issue very closely to say, ‘Oh, well, that will just solve everything, build the fence.’ The fence doesn’t solve the problem.”

It Could Happen: Trump Golfing While His Secret Service Works Without Pay

Trump might have to put off his golf vacation if he forces a government shutdown over his border wall. But he loves his golf, so that might mean no shutdown.

www.huffingtonpost.com

Such is the nightmare public relations scenario facing the White House less than a week before the Department of Homeland Security and other key government agencies run out of money at midnight Friday while Trump is scheduled to fly that day to his Mar-a-Lago resort for a 16-day vacation.

“The only leverage in shutting down the government is who gets the blame for it. And he’s already taken the blame for it.” Rick Tyler, former aide to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas)